THE

WORD

MARCH, 1913.

MOMENTS WITH FRIENDS.

Can elementary matter, by magical processes, be brought into concrete form by means of the hands; if so, what particular form can be produced and how is it done?

It is possible for one who has the necessary mental powers and psychic organization to give physical existence by magical processes to any form he desires; and yet, it may be cheaper in the end for him to get that object as other people get the objects of their desire. With the hands as matrix any mineral deposit or geometrical form can be precipitated from elemental matter. Likewise can elemental matter be by the hands drawn together and moulded into solid form.

The spiritual and mental powers necessary in one who would give a physical form to invisible matter are: faith, will, and imagination. In addition, his astral body must be able to retain and to generate much magnetism. Everybody has faith, will, and imagination; but, in a magician, these must be raised to a higher power. No work is performed without faith. For the work in hand, our magician must have faith, and that is knowledge in action. This faith may not be the result of his works and efforts in the present life. Our magician must have faith in his ability to bring into visibility that which is not visible, to make the inaudible audible, to make tangible that which is not tangible, to produce to the senses that which they are usually unable to sense. If he has not the faith that these things can be done, if he has not the faith that he can do them, thenâ€”he cannot. If he believes he can perform magic works because somebody tells him he can, his belief is not faith. It remains belief, a notion. For success in his work his faith must well up within him, and be unshaken by anything that may be said. The faith which thus wells up comes from a forgotten knowledge, acquired in the past. He must not remain satisfied with an unshaken faith, but he must bring the past into present knowledge. He must use his mind. If he is willing to exercise his mind by thoughts, his faith will guide him in his mental operations and will provide the way for the past to become present knowledge.

As to imagination, our magician must be different from those who are called people of imagination, because they have flights of fancy. Imagination is the making of images, or the state in which images are made. The images which our magician makes are mental images and which, when made, are not as easily broken as are those of clay or other physical matter. The images of our magician are harder to make and to break and will last longer than those fashioned of marble or steel. To have imagination necessary for his work, our magician must fix his mind on that to which he would give physical form. He must make an image of it. This he does by keeping his mind on the form until it is to him an image, which he may summon again by thought. When he has faith and can make images at will, he has also will. That is to say, he is able to call on will to aid in his work. The will is everywhere and like electricity is always ready to lend its power to anyone who provides the field for its operations and who can make it contact the field.

All the movements of swimming may be described with mathematical accuracy; yet, if one in the water tries to follow directions but has no faith in his ability to swim and does not imagine himself swimming while making the movements, then he wills not to swim. Doubt and then fear seizes him, and he sinks. In trying to walk a tight rope, one who has not faith that he can walk it and does not imagine himself on the rope and walking the rope wills to fall, and he does. Familiarity with the laws of gravitation and physics will not keep him on that rope. Faith shows him how. Imagination keeps him on the rope. Will gives him the power to walk. As long as he imagines himself on the rope and his confidence continues, he cannot fall. But should his thought change, and should he for a fraction of a second imagine himself falling, the picture which he makes of his falling will unbalance and pull him down.

Equipped with faith, will, and imagination, one can produce by means of his hands physical phenomena by magical processes. To illustrate: To give physical visibility to form, the form must be held or imagined. The fluid matter whirling, invisible, must be held compact until it becomes fixed and in thought solid. This is work for imagination. Passes can now be made with the hands around and about the desired form. By the movements of the hands around the form, elemental matter is drawn and precipitated into that form and, gradually, with continued precipitations, the form becomes visible and physical. This is done by the power of faith, which makes the laws controlling elemental matter known and how to draw it into all the work is accomplished. The thought is the guide which causes the will to fuse or blend the elemental matter and to bring it into form. If the thought wavers in the operations, the work stops. If the thought is steady, the work of imagination and faith will be completed by the will. The form is made physical, and is of the size and color desired. A small object, such as a stone or crystal or gem, may be formed by placing the right hand over the left, the center of the palms opposite each other. Then the stone or gem or crystal must be imagined and that image must be held in thought and its precipitation willed. The magnetism of the operatorâ€™s hands is the ground in which the image of the crystal or gem, as a germ or seed, begins to grow. With the magnetic force between the hands, the ray or rays of light are made to precipitate into the matrix in the mind, until the gem of the desired size and color and luster is produced. Forms have been and can be produced by magical processes, but it is easier to procure the desired forms in the usual methods than to go through the necessary training in order to produce them by magical means. But it is well for a man to have faith, to develop his imagination, to learn the uses of the will. The development or acquirement of these three magical powers will make a man of him. Then he can, but it is not likely that he will, be a maker of precious stones or other forms by magical processes.

How should the hands be used in the healing of oneâ€™s own physical body or any part of the body?

Directions cannot be given which would be fit for all kinds of diseases, but directions can be given to aid in the cure of constitutional and local ills, and which may apply generally to many others. It is best for those who would heal to understand a few fundamentals about the body and its magnetic nature, before they attempt magnetic treatment, of their own bodies or those of others.

The physical body is a mass of matter organized according to certain laws, each part to perform certain functions and serve certain purposes, for the common welfare of the whole. The physical mass is held together, repaired and maintained, by a fine magnetic body of form within the mass. The natural functions of the physical body, such as absorption, digestion, assimilation, elimination, and all involuntary movements, are carried on by the magnetic body of form within the physical mass. Certain laws govern all functions of the body. If these laws are transgressed, physical ills will inevitably follow. These ills are evidence that some wrong has been done, and that there is an obstruction or that there are many obstructions in the body which prevent the magnetic body from bringing about a harmonious relationship of its parts or functions, or that there is a greater expenditure of energy than its resources can supply. The magnetic form body is a storage battery through which universal life acts. The magnetic body is the medium which connects universal life with physical matter. Without the magnetic body, the physical mass would crumble into dust.

In the cure of ills by means of the hands, the right hand is placed on the forehead and the left hand at the back of the head. After remaining there quietly for a few minutes, the right hand should be placed on the chest and the left hand opposite on the spine. In a few minutes the left hand should be placed in the small of the back and the palm of the right hand on the navel. In a minute or two the right hand should be moved slowly and gently around the entire surface of the abdomenâ€”in the direction in which a watch is woundâ€”forty-nine times and then be brought to its first position and allowed to remain about three minutes. The left hand should be kept still, with the palm under the spine, during the movements of the right hand. The body should be in a reclining position.

With regard to any local treatment, the left hand should be placed underneath the part affected and the right hand on the other side over the part and there allowed to remain about five minutes or until such time as one feels naturally that it is time to stop. The local treatment should be preceded or followed by the general treatment first described. The parts of the body may be rubbed, but the rubbing should be gentle. Harsh treatment is usually injurious according to these methods.

The physical hands do not produce the cure; the magnetic form within the hands does not produce the cure. The cure is produced by the universal life, which is conducted to the magnetic form within the physical body by means of the hands. The object of placing the hands on the body is to conduct universal life to the magnetic form and to strengthen the magnetic form so that it may receive and store and be in direct contact with universal life. In treating oneâ€™s own body or the body of another, it must be well understood that the mind does not effect the cure, and that the mind must not try to direct the current or interfere with its flow in any way. If one cannot keep his mind in a calm and restful attitude, so as not to interfere with the cure, it is much better not to follow the practices here suggested. An attempt of the mind to direct the current of the cure does harm to the large part of the body to satisfy a small part. But in reality all parts are damaged by the pull. This is not mind or mental healing. This magnetic treatment as described will stimulate the magnetic body to renewed action and universal life will replenish it. In order to effect a cure and keep the body well, the body should be given the foods which one finds that it needs to repair and maintain its structure, and all wastes or drains on the body must be stopped.